Monkeyz n' da hood

Must have been a need for a gang problem here if the monkeys have to fill the void!!

From the Cambodia Daily, Tuesday Jan. 10, 2006, page 16

'Gangster monkeys' a Menace, Neighbors Say

By Lor Chandara and David McFadden
The Cambodia Daily

A roving band of what one municipal official has dubbed "gangster
monkeys" has been swiping laundry, biting students and eluding police
across Daun Penh district in Phnom Penh.

Pich Socheata, deputy governor of Daun Penh district, said monday that
she will seek approval from City Hall to launch a campaign to capture
unruly, violent wild monkeys.

"We have to collect the nasty monkeys from the city. Otherwise they
will disturb visitors and people living in the neighborhood," she said.
"I have seen some monkeys grab glue bags from street kids and then they
climbed up trees and sniffed it up. That's why some monkeys become
violent and attack people."

Phnom Penh Governor Kep Chuktena,
however, dismissed the notion that
any of the macaques, which he said are
largely peaceful animals and
popular with tourists, have been
sniffing glue. "No, there are no
monkeys sniffing glue. Some become
violent because of sexual
motivations," he said.

Pich Socheata estimated that more than 200
wild monkeys congregate in
trees around Wat Phnom, the Ministry of
Commerce and the French school
Lycee Rene Descartes. Following recent complaints
 of monkey attacks on
members of the public, the Daun Penh district has
seized 15 macaques.

"We contacted the Cambodian authorities
to tell them that the
monkeys were in the vcinity of the school and were affecting the safety of
the students," said Claude Abily, French Embassy spokeswoman. "There have been
several instances of students who have been bitten."

John Daigle, spokesman for the US Embassy, housed across from Wat
Phnom, said the embassy has not contacted district officials about the
monkeys.

At Lycee Rene Descartes, an administrator, who said school
policy prevented her from giving her name, confirmed that a few students had
been bitten by monkeys coming on school grounds because of a fig tree,
which has since been cut down for that reason.


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